Individuals use various methods of tracking their ideas and related work. One common approach is the use of a bound paper lab notebook. In the context of laboratory research, a lab notebook is a primary record of research. Researchers use a lab notebook to document their hypotheses, experiments, and initial analysis or interpretation of such experiments. The notebook can serve as an organizational tool, a memory aid, and can also have a role in protecting any intellectual property that comes from the research. Lab notebooks have many similar applications in areas outside of strict laboratory research. However, carrying around a bound lab notebook results in many hassles and security issues.
Lab notebooks also appear in electronic form. An electronic lab notebook may act like a standard word processing application that also tracks the dates on which new information was added to the notebook and provides a mechanism for verifying such information. Various organizations use both paper and electronic lab notebooks as mechanisms for documenting work and progress by their technical employees, and to communicate information about inventions and ideas between and among team members.